The Blue Workhorse

There were several great games in the first round of this year’s NCAA men’s basketball tournament, whether it has been an upset (San Diego over Connecticut, Siena over Vanderbilt), a near upset (Duke surviving Belmont), or double-digit comebacks (Villanova over Clemson, Drake against Western Kentucky only to fall in OT), and each of the great games has had key players.

But who had the best game of the first round and has earned the right to be deemed the “1st Round Workhorse” or most outstanding performance of the first round of the NCAA tournament?

Here are our candidates (in alphabetical order):

At about 9:30, a foul was called and suddenly everyone started looking up towards the roof of Atlanta’s Georgia Dome, where the SEC tournament is held, as a roaring noise scared many out of their seats. The fabric on the roof of the dome was harshly rippling, the catwalk/standard above the court was swaying back and forth, and in at least three areas (according to one of the broadcasters) the fabric was torn and debris fluttered down to the floor.

The players cleared the floor and many fans rushed into the concourse area. It appears very severe winds struck the dome, possibly even what could be classified as a tornado.

Many sports teams have fan traditions that can be seen as fun, funny, or just goofy. Some traditions are universal in all stadiums (such as the wave), some are sport specific (throwing hats on the ice after a hat trick in hockey), and some traditions are only performed in individual stadiums (throwing back a home run hit by an opposing team and singing “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” at Wrigley Field) or by the fans of individual teams (the New York Jets chanting “J-E-T-S, Jets, Jets, Jets”).

While it may look foolish when one person stands and waves a towel or a foam tomahawk, 30000, 50000 or even 100000 rabid fans yelling and waving a piece of sports paraphernalia becomes an imposing spectacle for an opposing fan or team member.

With the recent passing of Pittsburgh Steelers famed broadcaster Myron Cope, who was perhaps most famously known for his creation of the “Terrible Towel” waved frequently by the Steelers’ fans, we’re decided to honor Cope and his “Terrible Towel” with a list of the top 9 (we’re anti-top 5 and top 10) paraphernalia traditions in sports: